Why going outside is more important than you think
The healing power of sunlight & nature
👋Hello, my friend. With last night’s clock change (at least for those of us in the U.S.), today marks the unofficial start to spring and I’m here for it. Longer days, warmer temps, and more opportunities to get outside. Today, I’m diving into why that may be even more important for your health and overall well-being than you might realize.
Before we get into it, just a quick note that I’ll be joining Chris Cornell on the Ovadia Heart Health Telemedicine livestream Monday, March 10th at 3:00pm ET. We’ll be going deep on health, wellness, productivity, you name it… Join if you can!
Peloton Challenge 💪🏃🏋️
And one more thing… Shoutout to everyone who has joined the Intentional Wisdom group so far on Peloton. Here’s a snapshot of those with the most time working out this past week. I see you, Ranger23!
New challenge starts today and is in line with the theme of today’s newsletter: Complete at least 2 outdoor workouts in the next 7 days.
If you haven’t yet joined the group, here’s the LINK to get involved.
The surprising power of getting outside 🌄
This week, I listened to an episode of the Huberman Lab podcast called How to Enhance Your Immune System with guest Dr. Roger Seheult.
The episode was perfectly timed for me because I’ve been frustrated recently by the number of colds I’ve gotten in recent months.
I haven’t been able to figure it out. I eat healthy. I exercise daily. I prioritize sleep. And yet… I’m still getting colds.
I can probably chalk it up to having three picker-uppers of every virus known to man kids in the house, or maybe there’s some lingering effect of multiple COVID infections or maybe, just maybe… I’m just not getting outside enough.
Interestingly, in diving into this Huberman episode, I was absolutely struck by the amount of time that was spent discussing the power of sunlight. I tuned in to this 3.5 hour conversation (yes, a little bit of a beast but very much worth it), expecting almost all of it to be on sleep, diet, and supplements.
And while all of that stuff is eventually covered, an hour into the conversation, they were still on the first subject: How sunlight plays a massive role in protecting us from disease of all types.
I’m not going to get too technical here but some of what’s covered in this part of the conversation includes:
How infrared light from the sun penetrates deeply into the body, even through clothes, and has significant effects on mitochondrial function, disease prevention and overall health.
How viewing outdoor light has an outsized effect on everything from mood to the circadian rhythm and how viewing (especially blue) light at night is especially damaging to sleep architecture
How spending time outdoors and especially in green places has been shown in numerous research studies to lower inflammation in the body and have an almost endless amount of other benefits on overall health and wellness
Huberman and Seheult quote some pretty wild research including a study that followed 30,000 Swedish women over 20 years and showed a marked drop in all-cause mortality — including lower cardiovascular and CANCER diagnoses — for those exposed to great levels of sunlight over time — even to the point where it offset the effects of smoking. (What?!?)
When ‘healthy’ isn’t all that healthy🤧
Anyhow, looking back at the last several months, I realize I haven’t gotten outside nearly enough. I’ve worked out a ton but almost all of it has been indoors - in my home gym, on the treadmill, etc.
In fact, my life has gotten so “convenient” that I can and often do:
Get up & lift weights in my home gym
Drive to work and park under the building I work in
Take the elevator up to the office to work
Get on the incline treadmill for 45 minutes at lunchtime in the same building
Eat the lunch I brought with me, in my office
Drive home at the end of the day
Dinner, kids, Netflix, etc., bed
For those counting at home, that is exactly zero minutes outdoors. And I’m embarrassed to say, I’ve absolutely had stretches this winter where I’ve done this multiple days in a row.
Now compare this behavior which I assumed was pretty damn healthy (two workouts, healthy eating, a focus on sleep etc) to Huberman & Seheult feeling like they needed to spend the first HOUR of their Immunity conversation on sunlight and I think I’ve identified a problem.
What I’m doing about it… 😎
No, I’m not about to lather myself up with baby oil and bake in the sun for the next 12 hours.
As someone who had a malignant melanoma removed from my back last year, and who is pretty fair-skinned, I’d say I’m sufficiently freaked out about skin cancer. Thankfully, I do an every six-month full body scan with my dermatologist these days to keep an eye on all of that.
That said, what Huberman and Seheult are suggesting isn’t that we get excessive amounts of UV light on our skin (that’s the bad kind). What they’re saying is that to get the benefits from sun exposure all you really need to do is get outside more often — even 15 to 20 minutes per day — and even fully clothed.
So I’m starting there. My goal is to have zero days where I don’t get outside at all. That’s a pretty low bar but I think still a good one to aim for.
Beyond that, I’m going to shift some more of my workouts outdoors — not drastically but maybe two lunchtime treadmill walks per week become outdoor walks. And I’m going to aim to have more meetings at work outside — one-on-one coffees, Zoom calls that can be phone calls, etc.
What’s old is new ☀️🌳
One of my favorite parts about this Huberman episode (can you tell I enjoyed this one?) is how they talked a lot about the wisdom of past generations in treating all kinds of medical ailments.
While I love to use the latest trackers and apps, and am always assessing the impact of different supplements, that probably all pales in comparison to the health and wellness wisdom that has been passed down through generations across different cultures.
Some of the treatments & remedies that Huberman and Seheult discussed include:
Sun decks on hospital roofs — largely having gone by the wayside, these were once standard as giving patients access to fresh air & sun was viewed as a legitimate/critical treatment. Examples of the power of the sun in medical treatment are scattered throughout history — from Florence Nightingale - “the mother of modern nursing” treating patients with sun in the Crimean War to the modern day.
Forest bathing — the Japanese tradition of healing that involves spending time in nature and which has now been scientifically chronicled and proven to be effective
Hot towels & linens, baths, showers, saunas — even sand — to increase body temperature and stimulate the immune system. Every culture seems to have its own unique version. Turns out that generations of moms knew what they were talking about!
Anyhow, I’ll leave it to you to listen for yourself. There are a ton of gems and practical takeaways in this one — I’ve just covered the tip of the iceberg.
In the meantime, I hope you get a chance to get outside today to get some fresh air and a little bit of sun.
Have a great week
Greg
Content Diet
Let’s just make this easy. Tune in to hear me and Chris Cornell tomorrow at 3pm ET (YouTube link here — should still work for the replay). Below is Chris’s post on X where I believe you can also watch live:
And here’s that Huberman episode I’ve talked so much about.
Have a great week!
Greg